- Losino Horse-

The Losino horse gets its name from the area it was bred, the Losa Valley, which is in the northern part of the province of Spain. This horse is related to other breeds from the Cantabrian-Pyrenean branch, including the Garrano, the Galician pony, the Asturian, the Thieldon, the Sorraia, the Navarre horse, the Pottok, the Merens and the now extinct Catalan horse.

This breed was rather large in number until the 1950s, but afterwards, mainly due to farming mechanization, the crossbreeding with meat breeds and donkeys for mule production, their population declined to around 30 horses by 1986. Due to such an alarming situation, a project was begun for recuperating the breed. It was created in Pancorbo (Spain) as the first Breeding and Selection Center of the Losino Horse. The center has maintained a natural and extensive system of breeding. The animals, once they are capture, broken, and tamed, are used for riding lessons for young children, harnessing, and carrying people over the mountains and rural areas. By 1999, there were about 200 Losino horses.

The Losino horse stand an average of 15 hands high. They have a large head with fine features, a straight frontal profile with a slight curve at the nose. Their ears are small and thin and arch inwards. They have a flat forehead and big, expressive eyes, wide nostrils, and thick lips. They have a strong neck that tends to stick out at the chest, making it slightly straight or convex instead of a natural arch. Their chests are wide with good withers, a broad back with wide, sloping hindquarters, and a low-set tail that is thick and black.

Their shoulders are thin with good joints and circulation and very apparent tendons. Their backs are wide, their forelegs thin and strong with short fetlock joints and small, hard black hooves. They have good legs and "clean" hocks. Their hair is abundant and long, especially in the winter. They do not have feathers on their fetlocks.

Their coats can only be black, with small variety according to seasons. They can also have white marks on the forehead. They are used for riding, trail riding, and are a very hardy little horse.

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